A New Ride Opens in Disneyland (Real-X-Wings)
Amusement parks and playgrounds for kids are no longer in your backyard. Just like big malls where you find all shopping brands the theme parks and specially curated playgrounds offer unique experiences all in one place. This is the imagination of the 20th century and Disney is one of the biggest in the game. Their assets have no match ranging from movies, animations to physical experiences like ?Disneyland?.
The only way to remain prominent and relevant is to keep improving on the already popular rides or toys and offer new toys and experiment with them. In the field of Disneyland, this translates to huge rides that span rooms at a time. This time it is Star Wars, one of the most loved and followed franchises from Disney. The movies have spanned decades and they are deep into America’s culture in all kinds of media ranging from print to TV. This has grown way beyond the boundaries of the country and Star Wars is recognized by thousands across the world.
Boeing Made it Possible Yet Again
While none other than Boeing was contracted to take the first crewed Starlines capsule spaceflight commencing the Disney’s new Star Wars ride, the scene was magnificent. Boeing not only managed to take the last crucial steps to this historic spaceflight but also was busy turning the sci-fi fantasy into reality. It helped launch the much-awaited Star Wars X Game this last week.
Boeing helped Disney build the large X-wing large-scale starfighter spaceship in a way to celebrate the opening of ?Rise of the Resistance? ride at Disneyland Florida. The Disney World in Florida expands over 25,000 acres of property and can be converted to an equivalent of 101 sq. km. and that is really big. Till now only half of the property has been utilized and this is going to last at least this century. Not to mention, it has already lasted for 50 years since being opened in 1971. It is also known as the Walt Disney World Resort or Walt Disney World, or in short Disney World.
With over 74,000 employees working round the clock, this place is one of the largest for Disney parks. And, with the new ride called ?Real-X-Wings? just introduced, the company is trying to make its rides profitable and increase the footfall. According to their CEO, Bob Iger, there was a dip in the attendance in Q3 2019 and this was due to the absence of a second attraction in the resort.
Disneyland and Disney World had opened the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge early this year but found a below-expected attendance to its theme parks. This was an all-time low around less than 3% in the quarter in 2019. This is where Disney started pulling all of its strings and Boeing made it possible yet again. Disney and Boeing managed to bring all the theatrics to bring their theme park’s new ride complete with real X-wings spaceship with lightning speed. They are expecting a rise in attendance in December and January and this is possible only with some serious effort.
What is the X-Wing Starfighter? Why does it Matter?
It goes way past in history and only the ardent fans of the franchise can tell you the essence of it. The Rebel T-65B X-Wings is the Red Squadron in the Star Wars introduced in its 1997 Special Edition. Its first appearance dates back to a 1976 novel called ?Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker?. It was created by Incom Corporation back then and today it is all known by Disney. This has undergone multiple licensing and merchandising in these 4 decades and has gained immediate recognition among all its fans. Evidently, its fan base comprises people of all ages, the younger generation of today as well as those teens from the 1970s who are something around their 60s.
There is a real connection with the fanbase because of which it made total sense to Disney to bring up their new ride at Disneyland Florida.
The final goal is to bring back the attendance to record-setting numbers and maximize their profits. In the movie, the lake where Luke Skywalker crashes his X-wing in ?The Empires Strikes Back? was only 3.5 feet deep. This required the creation of a rig resembling a starfighter sitting at the lake at an angle. It was hinged to make it look like it was sinking. Later in 1993 visual effects specialist was created simulations to demonstrate the feasibility of using commercially available desktop computers to create scenes like dodge fighting X-wings and TIE fighters. Today, CG is the norm and CGI has its roots everywhere creating breathtaking scenes we have continued to enjoy for decades.
Star Wars: Rise of Resistance is a Novel Ride
This new ride that has opened in Florida offers something unique and interesting. It offers a combination of a walking ride and a trackless dark ride where visitors can take the role of Resistance spies on Batau. Galaxy’s Edge actors are famous for staying-in-character and call smartphones as ?DataPads?. And, this ride also exudes similar attention to detail.
This new ride is separated into 3 parts. The first part is a line that takes attendees through a secret Resistance base where they are briefed about their mission by an animatronic BB8. There is a hologram of Rey and videos from Poe Dameron. The Sullustan pilot Nien Nunb also makes an appearance. This makes it feel so real and magical. Now, these characters come from the sequel trilogy but the geeks can recall that Nien Nunb was also the co-pilot of Lando on his mission to destroy the Death Star in ?Return of the Jedi?.
Lof things have been taken care of such as the design of the base in some ruins. Now, after the brief, the ride begins and the in-character actors lead the way. The next part is also very exciting with real-life action. After the animatronics of Lieutenant Beck attempt to fly the guests or the new attendees and spies of the resistance to a secret base holding General Organa. This is interrupted by First Order Star Destroyer quickly and the guests are pulled back. They exit from the same door and step out into a completely new surrounding their Start Destroyer. You can take a peek at the real base and the set designed by Disney here?and begin to appreciate the depth and detail of it.
The Opening Ceremony Event was Really Gorgeous
During the ride’s opening ceremony on the evening of December 4th, two X-wings (designed by Boeing in collaboration with Disney) that were roughly the size of a family van took flight and took to the skies. It keeps the spectators gazing and locked to the scene. It kept hovering in the place as an audio clip of the recording between the pilot and its commander kept playing through the speakers for the audience to listen to. And, as it came to an end both the pilots flew out of sight before the sound effects and flashing lights came down bringing the spectacle to an end.
The House of Mouse has gone from simple animations back in the days of Walt Disney to Star Wars with galactic interstellar travel. There is so much more than you can ever imagine from theme parks that are built to last. In Florida, you have a nice secondary attraction now and this makes the visit well worth the coming summer or this holiday season. The art of designing and making the spectators gaze with awe has been in their blood even before Disney acquired LucasFilm, the creator of the amazing franchise we call Star Wars. Disney has used its knack for theatrics, engineering, architecture and even gone into game design to bring Star Wars to life. It has brought profits for over 40 years now and is still making money. It has brought to its park attendees something that reminds them of their childhood and turning those images in the posters to life.? Beginning with the original launch of Star Tours back in 1987, a galaxy far, far away has always felt closer and closer to the attendees when they arrive as Disney Theme Parks, and this part of the entertainment is more like a legacy and tribute to their fans.
With the new theme ride opening in Florida, the new ?Rise of Resistance? ride with Real X-Wings has managed to bring some attention to people.? And, the word is soon spreading. It is coming with full force on January 17 to Disneyland. This video?from Los Angeles Times gives you a walkthrough of the rides in this place and is sure to get your adrenaline rush faster.
The Things to Note when You ?Look Closer?
Absolute fans of Star Wars will note that the X-wings they made here feature a split-engine design that was introduced with T-70 variant flow by the Resistance in the current trilogy. This is in contrast to the full-cylinder design of T-65 from the original trilogy. That does make sense when you understand that the Rise of Resistance takes place during the encounter with the Resistance and the First Order.? And, this is as per the current trilogy timeline. Attention to the source material and details make this a nice watch and more so a great experience when you visit Disneyland Florida.
In this tutorial Star Wars: X-Wing Game, its miniature toys, and others complete tutorial on assembling your complete set and playing this game with friends. These miniatures can be found on Amazon right now. This YouTube video from the official Fantasy Flight Games that make the Star Wars X-Wing miniatures offers a complete tutorial and walkthrough for beginners. They include all varieties including ?Force Awakens?, combat, missions and more. This is almost like a board game with the theme of Star Wars. If you’ve enjoyed these or have collected these, Disney’s new ride is a sure attraction that has all these for real at a much larger scale. The rides offer a mix of virtual reality and augmented reality. When you sit in the cockpit and fly the drone, you see visuals of debris and other flights around you, you see yourself traveling through space and you see yourself amidst combat. The small game has become real now and you get to enjoy all the fun.
As it is designed by Boeing, their CAV shows that they have completed a three-minute test flight demonstrating the forward movement, flying outdoors and have designed the cargo for industrial applications. The starfighter can carry weight up to 500lbs and makes the demonstration much more interesting. You can see the actual video footage of this on YouTube as well.
Pros
- The theme park aptly called ?Rise of Resistance? has introduced the X-wings for real and offers people of all ages a magnificent ride into Star Wars.
- You can realize the base, the scenery, the inside of a spaceship just like in the movies but on a much larger scale.
- It almost feels like a?big movie set but something that is meant to be permanent for now sitting at Disney World Florida.
- The best attraction was the display of the X-wings flying and hovering in the night sky.
Cons
- The hovering flight X-wings by Boeing is still not for rides and is under process.
- Disney aims to bring in an increase in footfall so that this project sees complete success and more addition in the future.
Concluding Thoughts
As a first attempt in bringing to reality the actual movie sets for its attendees to enjoy a part of Star Wars, they have only fantasized in posters. Disney has made an attempt to bring the storyline to reality, from sci-fi to physical objects. This experience is like no other. It is fun and it is also thrilling. Star Wars Disneyland Florida must be on your todo list for sure if you’re planning on a vacation soon. Overall, the energy is fantastic and just the videos on YouTube are more than enough to get you going.